Mobile data traffic will increase ten-fold over the next five years with almost 5 billion mobile broadband subscriptions by the end of 2016, predicts network infrastructure company Ericsson.

The company’s latest Traffic and Market Data report also found that there has been a 60 percent increase in mobile broadband subscriptions over the past year, with subscriptions expected to hit 900 million by the end of 2011. Meanwhile, total smartphone traffic is forecast to triple this year.

Ericsson expects the amount of mobile data traffic to increase by 60 percent every year until 2016, mainly driven by demand for video content. The arrival of new smartphones, the greater availability of mobile broadband and increased use of mobile applications will also drive data consumption, with Ericsson expecting traffic from ‘advanced smartphones’ to increase 12-fold during the period.

It has been predicted that more than 30 percent of the world’s population will live in urban areas by 2016, with a population density of more than 1,000 people per square kilometre. According to Ericsson, this will mean users occupying less than 1 percent of the Earth’s land area will generate 60 percent of the mobile traffic.

The report is based on measurements taken by the company over several years on the more than 1,000 networks it supports around the world. Ericsson’s Head of Business Unit Networks, Johan Wibergh, said the measurements are used by the company to efficiently design products and plan network expansion.